The aim of the Anglesey Red Squirrel Project is to control the greys and create a suitable habitat for red squirrels so their numbers can increase to a sustainable level on Anglesey.

At one time Anglesey only had red squirrels, but their number started dwindling when the greys came over. By the mid 1990s, there was just a last surviving group of approximately 30 animals hanging on by their toe-nails in Pentraeth Woods.

The alarm bells started ringing and the local community took the initiative of setting up a project to save them; the impetus was provided by the late Esme Kirby and Lady Anglesey. They got the local landowners and conservation bodies to support the project, and arranged the appointment of a specialist in red squirrel conservation, Dr Craig Shuttleworth, to lead the project.

Being an island, there was a better chance of eradicating the grey squirrels here than in other areas. Our aim is to make Anglesey exclusively red squirrel country again.

Genetic analysis, which the Friends helped to fund, has shown that the last remaining red squirrels in Pentraeth Woods had been through a genetic bottleneck and were in danger of being wiped out if disease struck. So, it was decided to start a new captive breeding and soft release programme in Newborough Forest, which it was hoped would bring new blood into the Anglesey population of red squirrels.

The Anglesey project has led the way in red squirrel conservation and the European Squirrel Initiative has praised our methodology and upholds us as an example to the rest of Europe. The key is getting the support of the community - you can't do anything like this without their help and everyone on Anglesey has been great.

People often ask why they can't see the red squirrels while they frequently see the greys. Red squirrels are far more shy - as soon as they sense human presence they will go and hide. If you are walking through the woods you might not see a red, but they will be watching you. They do leave traces of their presence and we know they use the nesting and feeding boxes we have put up for them.

Sometimes greys can be confused for reds because in the winter their coat takes on a reddish hue, but the greys are larger and don't have the tufts on their ears.

The red squirrel is the indigenous species. The greys were brought here in the 19th century and proliferated, to the detriment of the red. Ideally we should use a contraceptive programme to help control the numbers of greys - this is possible, but considered costly.

Our ambition is to make Anglesey an official reserve for red squirrels - a kind of Noah's ark for endangered populations of red squirrels.

Friends of the Anglesey Red Squirrels is a community-based voluntary group which was formally established in 2000 to raise awareness and educate the public about the plight of the Anglesey red squirrels.

We provide the interface between the actual conservation project, administered by Menter Môn, a rural regeneration agency, and the public. From the very outset the Friends received hearty support from the community as well as from the local authorities on Anglesey.

We have a dedicated team of volunteers who have organised many public events to engage and inform the public. Judith Moss has been an active and inspiring founder member and over the years, the Friends have built up substantial membership and support.

We do a lot of work with schools - our volunteers tell the children about the special position of the red squirrel as a flagship species of the Biodiversity Action Plan - and inform them about all aspects of its life and habitat. We also tell them about their own very special position in having the opportunity to help save an endangered species. An animal not on the other side of the world but on their own doorstep!